Launches, festivals and in-conversation events

Meet our two guest authors at Thursda... A week of books and conversations

Launches, festivals and in-conversation events

Dear Friends,
Every year, winter takes me by surprise and, sure enough, this week I've been gobsmacked by the cold. As a rule, I then contemplate getting a new heater but by the time my mind is finally made up it's already August, winter is almost over and, once again, the heater purchase is deferred. Last year, though, I finally followed through, and already the winter is promising to be a cosier one. Hope you are staying warm, wherever you are.

I have another week of interviews coming up: Bryan Brown and Chris Hammeron Sunday, Eleanor Limprecht on Monday and Jackie Bailey on Tuesday. Hope you can join me at one - or all - of the events!

Right before Thursday Book Club tomorrow night, internationally bestselling author Adrian McKinty will be in conversation with fellow crime writer, Tim Ayliffe. If you'd like to be in the draw to win tickets to this online eventpresented by BAD Sydney Crime Writers Festival, simply reply to this email with your book recommendation.

NEW RELEASE RECOMMENDATION

THE PREMONITIONS BUREAU
A True Story

Sam Knight  https://www.abbeys.com.au/book/the-premonitions-bureau-sam-knight-9780571374830.do
ABBEY'S BOOKSELLER PICK ----- This is the true story of John Barker, a British psychiatrist who began to investigate cases of people who reportedly had premonitions of disasters. There are some quite moving and eccentric stories beginning with the Aberfan disaster in Wales. As to the veracity of the project as a whole, which may appear to be dubious to say the least, well, that's up to the reader to decide. Knight details these stories including Barker’s own personal battles with a compassionate and intriguing manner.  Greg Waldron Enter the code THURSDAYBOOKCLUB at the checkout for a 15% discount on Abbey's new release recommendations and our For Kids recommendations.This code will also get you a 15% discount on the books by my guests on Thursday Book Club and my latest novels, The Teacher's Secret and The Deceptions.
FOR KIDS

A FIRST BOOK OF AUSTRALIAN FROG CALLS

Fred Van Gessel, Gerry Swan

https://www.abbeys.com.au/book/a-first-book-of-australian-frog-calls-9781925546767.do

ABBEY'S BOOKSELLER PICK ----- Fred is famous in birding circles for his amazing and extensive knowledge of bird calls, and has produced sound books on common Australian birds for young naturalists, so it is a delight to have a book that introduces frog calls to them as well. Twelve species are covered; each page has compact information covering facts like habitat, distribution and habits alongside clear photographs, and a sound button that reproduces the calls. Appeals to young and old, going by the customers I see who are attracted to the book! Lindy Jones

NEWS

International crime writers in conversation throughout June

Every Thursday in June at 6pm, BAD International Online Festival will feature a fabulous line up of international star crime writers. Don Winslow, Adrian McKinty, Janet Evanovich, Harlan Coben and Mick Herron will be talking about their latest books for the third annual BAD International Online Festival on 2, 9, 16, 23 and 30 June. You can register here.

Author talk with Michelle Cahill

Join Michelle Cahill in conversation with Intan Paramaditha at Better Read Than Dead at 6pm on Sunday 5 June as they discuss the release of Michelle's novel, Daisy & Woolf. You can register here.

Eleanor Limprecht in conversation with Suzanne Leal

Join me in conversation with Eleanor Limprecht at The Royal Oak in Balmain at 7pm on Monday 6 June 2022. We'll be celebrating the release of her new novel, The Coast. You can buy tickets to the event here.

Jackie Bailey in conversation with Suzanne Leal

Join me at Gleebooks at 6pm on Tuesday for the launch of Jackie Bailey's debut novel, The Eulogy. You can buy tickets here.

Rachel Franks in conversation with Paula Hamilton
On 22 June at 12.30pm, true crime expert Rachel Franks will be in conversation with historian Paula Hamilton about An Uncommon Hangman, Rachel's new book on Robert ‘Nosey Bob’ Howard, NSW’s longest-serving executioner. You can register for this free event here.

2022 Miles Franklin Literary Award longlist

The Other Half of You (Michael Mohammed Ahmad, Hachette)
After Story (Larissa Behrendt, UQP)
Scary Monsters (Michelle de Kretser, A&U)
Bodies of Light (Jennifer Down, Text)
Echolalia (Briohny Doyle, Vintage)
The Magpie Wing (Max Easton, Giramondo)
The Dogs (John Hughes, Upswell)
The Airways (Jennifer Mills, Picador)
One Hundred Days (Alice Pung, Black Inc.)
The Performance (Claire Thomas, Hachette)
7 ½ (Christos Tsiolkas, A&U)
Grimmish (Michael Winkler, Puncher & Wattmann).

Book Awards Shortlists for the 2022 ABIAs.

Congratulations to all the shortlisted authors, especially our guest authors on Thursday Book Club, Jacqueline Maley, who joined us last year, and Emily Bitto who will be joining us on 30 June. You can find all the shortlists here.

2022 Pulitzer Prizes

The 2022 Pulitzer Prizes have been announced and the winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction is The Netanyahus: An Account of a Minor and Ultimately Even Negligible Episode in the History of a Very Famous Family, by Joshua Cohen (New York Review Books). You can find the full list of the 2022 Pulitzer Prizes here.

Words on the Waves Writers Festival

I'm very excited to be interviewing Bryan Brown and Chris Hammer at the Words on the Waves Writers Festival on Sunday. Hope to see you there!

WRITERS' CORNER

Writing Competitions

6 June 2022: Bruce Dawe National Poetry Prize
The 2022 winner of the Bruce Dawe National Poetry Prize will receive $3000 and two highly commended entrants will be awarded $500 each.

15 June 2022: ARA Historical Novel Prize
The ARA Historical Novel Prize awards $50000 to the Adult category winner, with $5000 awarded to each of the remaining two shortlisted authors. In the Children and Young Adult category, the winner will receive $30000 while the two shortlisted authors will receive $5000 each.

17 June 2022: Writing for the Environment Prize
The 2022 Sutherland Shire Environment Centre’s national invites writers to submit a fictional piece of prose on the topic of peace and sustainability.
4 July 2022: The ACU Prize for Poetry
The theme for the 2022 ACU Prize for Poetry is 'Hope.' The winner will receive $10 000, with a $5000 second prize and a $3000 third prize.

What is Thursday Book Club? Thursday Book Club is a relaxed, friendly book club connecting readers online. We meet on Zoom from 8 - 8.30pm. There are no scheduled books to read: we simply chat about books we like & books we’re reading. Once a month, a guest writer joins us.

Zoom in as you can – it doesn’t matter if you’re late or have to leave early. Just join my Zoom conference room between 8pm and 8.30pm on Thursdays by clicking on this link: https://us04web.zoom.us/j/8521042343

If prompted, here are the details to manually enter:

Meeting ID:852 104 2343

Password 886 196

On 30 June, we'll be joined by Emily Bitto, winner of the Stella Prize for her debut novel The Strays. I'll be talking to Emily about her terrific new novel, Wild Abandon.

Thursday Book Club Recommendations

My Recommendation

Treasure and Dirt by Chris Hammer

Dina Davis' Recommendations

Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
How to End a Story: Diaries: 1995–1998 by Helen Garner

Toby Roberts' Recommendations

A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
Churchill: Walking with Destiny by Andrew Roberts
Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls by David Sedaris

Take care,

PS. Would you like me to drop in to your book club?

If your book club has chosen to read The Deceptions or The Teacher’s Secret, I’d be delighted to attend your meeting by Zoom (whether your group is meeting online or gathering together in person) to answer any of your questions. To schedule a date, please email me here. Click here for my Zoom Meeting You can buy The Deceptions and The Teacher’s Secret
directly from my publisher here:
Kindle version
Paperback